STEMlab selected for dense network of dual-mission HF radars

The proposed PiRadar solution costs 95% less than contemporary radar nodes using the latest COTS SDR technology and simultaneously offers polarisation-sensitive ionosphere probing with 1-25km range resolution and relaying of data over the horizon at 1-20+kpbs rates.

This enables the deployment of networks dense and distributed enough to make real-time 3D images of the ionosphere at a much lower cost than traditional single-site radars. This makes the solution ideal even for hobby scientists and schools.

PiRadar nodes work together as an infrastructure-less self-organising network, transmitting pseudo-noise CDMA waveforms hundreds of kilometers in the shortwave radio bands. PiRadar waveforms simultaneously measure ionospheric characteristics and contain data relayed through the mesh to other nodes or to internet destinations.

STEMlab from Red Pitaya is a test and measurement environment that includes a board, an application marketplace and a source code library. It is designed as a low-cost alternative to many expensive measurement and control instruments.

STEMlab can function as an Oscilloscope, Logic Analyser, Signal Generator, Spectrum Analyser and more, also performing other tasks like vector network analysis. It is based on high end FPGA technology, enabling software and hardware programming, coupled with very accurate high-end ADCs.

Customisable at the FPGA and CPU levels, STEMlab can process real-world signals.